Parachute.



E. R. CALTHROP.

PARACHUTE.

APPLICATION FILED Nov. 9, 1918.

1,299,123. Patented Apr. 1,1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

E. R. CALTHROP.

PARACHUTE.

APPLICATION HLED Nov. 9. 1918.

Patented Apr. 1,1919.

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nnarnn rn'rnn'rs Lrmrnn, or Lennon, antena,

mesasa Original application flled April 19, 1918, Serial No. 229,6523. Divided and this application med November 551,

, 1918. Serial Ifo. 281,825.

-To all whom it may conccrn:

Be it known that l[, EvnRARD RICEARD -CAL'rHRor9 a subject of the King of Great Britain,v residing at London, in the county of Middlesex, England, have invented new and useful fmprovements Relating to Parachutes, of which the following is a specification. v

rll`his invention has reference to parachutes adapted to be carried by aerial craft to afiord a ready means whereby the pilot may descend safely to the ground in an einergency and is a division of the subject matter of my co-pending application Serial No. 229,628 filed 19th April 1918.

More particularly the invention relates to devices of the kind in which the parachute is compactly nested within or on a container or support fromv which it is freed on the application of the load in such a manner that the folds or plaits of the parachute body are released successively from the periphery toward the center in .ordered sequence so as to insure the trappng of a column of air and thereby render certain the complete or full expansion of the parachute body. p

The use of launching devices of this kind have demonstrated that a parachute when released therefrom opens practically instantaneously and the load is brought slowly and safely to the ground. It is however conceivable that this rapid expansion of the parachute in imniediate proximity to the aircraft from which it is released might in some circumstances, prove rather a disadvantage than otherwise for example in the case of the airship or other craft bursting into fianie from any cause the parachute might be damaged before it could clear the burning Structure and it is the priinary object of the present invention to provide a parachute launching device which while insuring the eventual certain Opening of the parachute body to support the load. isI adapted to defer .the complete Opening and expansionpof the parachute for a sufiicient time to enable it to fall .rapidly for a suflicient distance to be well clear of the aircraft from which it is released.

' To this end the invention comprises means for controlling the mouth of the parachute body so as to enable the fall of the parachute to be regulated the prelminary fall Specificaton of Letters Eatent.

Patented Apn il, fgltlb.,

or highspeed drop being determinable by means operable by the airman and the after descent or drop being thereby subject to retardation by the subsequent full expansion of the parachute body the Operation of the said means. releasing and allowing of the complete Opening andexpansion' of the mouth of the said body I will now describe my invention With reference to the accompanying drawings in. which Figure l is a bottom plan view ofa parachute body showing an ernbodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 shows diagrainmatically in side view the releasing means adapted foruse with the arrangement illustrated in Fig. 1 positionedin operative relation to the parachute body. 1

Fig. 3 is a vertical section on a larger scale of the releasing device shown in Fig. 2.

certain readily ruptura-ble cords areautomatically severed the parachute body thereupon being free to complete its full e-xpansion. lfn the present application however the complete Opening of the month of the parachute bodyis under the control of the aviator so that he may determine the most advantageous moment whenthe restraining influences Operating upon the open mouth of the parachute shall be removed to permit of the full expansion of the parachute body and in the means I have devised for accomplishing this object When the parachute is launched the mouth thereof is allowed to open a certain distance suflicient only to entrap the necessary air to insure its subscquent complete expansion and to restrain the complete expansion of the parachute until the functions of the means employed' by a spring 22 and carrying a disk 23 beneath the edge of which engages the ends of the bell crank levers 24 pivotally supported .bv lugs 25 on the casing 20. The short arm of each of the levers 24 carries a pin 26 which engages in an arcuate slot 27 formed in a plate 28 pivotally mounted on the casing 20 as at 29. The plates 28 are each formed with a projection or tooth`30 beneath which one arm of each of the detents 3-1 engages, the other arm of said detents being engaged in slotted plates 32 carried by the ends of each of the aforesaid tapes 18. As will be evident from a consideration of Fig. 3 when the spindle 21 is pulled downwardly by the pilot actuating the rope 17 the long arms of the' levers 24 will be depressed turningthe plates 28 about their pivots 29 freeing the detents 31 and allowing the plates 32 to slipl off the detents thus simultaneously releasing all the tapes 18 and p'ermitting the Inouth of the parachute to expand to its full extent. Alternatively instead of providing separate tapes 18 between the periphery of the parachute body and the central release device 19 T may provide loops or rings upon the rigging or main tapes 3 at a suitable distance from the said periphery and engage said loops or rings with the detents 31.

To ,prevent the releasing device 19 falling4 upon the pilot when all the tapes 18 are released said device is held suspended by the cords 33 which extend from the parachu-te body to lugs 20 on the under side of the casing 20 (see Figs. 2 and 3).

To prevent accidental Operation of the releasing device 19 I prefer to provide a breaking piece or rupturable connection 34 between a portion of the actuating rope 17 and the device 19 so that a pull on said rope will only be eifective after the breaking piece 34 is ruptured.

It will be apparent that the requisite pull exerted by the pilot upon the rope 17 to render the parachute fully operative will be a comparatively heavy one and it may in some circumstances be desirable to provide means whereby a light pull on the part of the pilot will be suflicient to bring about the desired sequence of Operation. I have illus-` trated means to this end in Fig. 4 Wherein the pilot is shown as descending at the first naaaiaa or high speed drop and about to cause the operation of the various instrumentalities where'by the full expansion of .the parachute will be effected. Interposed between the pilot will drop a short distance so that his weight is taken by the rope 40 with the result that a pull is efi'ected upon the cord 17 and the release gear 19 operated.

To safeguard the Operating cord 17 against entanglement when the whole launchin device is in the inoperative or nested con i'tion it is preferably coiled or stowed in a suitable pocket 56 on the lower Waterproof cover 5 pertaining to the container (not shown) for the parachute.

Referring to Fig. 5 the supplementary releasing device 37 illustrated therein on a larger scale comprises a block 41 which is attached to the pilotas harness 36 and has pivoted therein as at 42 a lever 43 a tooth on the latter taking into an aperture 45 in said block'and also engaging a bar 46 secured to the shock absorber 35. The operating cord 38 is connected to the lever 43, a breaking piece 34 being provided toprevent accidental Operation of the device. The lever 43 isretained in the position shown by a light rubber band 47. Upon the pilot exerting a pull' upon the cord 38 the said breaking piece 34 and band 47 will be broken the lever 43 deflected or turned about its pivot 42 and the tooth 44 disengaged from the bar 46 the two parts namely 41 and 46 being thereby allowed to separate and the weight of the pilot to be exerted upon the rope 40 with the result previously described.

An alternative construction of releasing gear is shown in Figs. 6 and 7. Tn this construction the block 41 and bar 46 are held in operative relation by a slidably mounted pin 48 in threaded engagement with a wheel 49 about which an Operating tape 50 is Wound. Said tape is the equivalent of the cord 38 described Withreference to Fig. 5 and' upon pulling same the wheel 49 will be rotated thus withdrawing the pin 48 from engagement with the bar 46 and allowing the two parts to separate. Rollers 51, preferably of rubber are provided to exercise a breaking efl'ect upon the tape 50 wound -on the wheel 49 and prevent it becoming loose thereon, and also to guide and assist the unwinding of the tape when it is actuated by the pllot.

What I claim-and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. In a parachute and launching device the combination with a parachutebody of a centrally disposed releasing device and restraining tapes adapted to connect said body with said releasing device and supporting said device and means convenient to the parachutist for Operating said releasing dev1ce.

2. In a parachute andlaunching device the combination with the parachute body of a central'ly dis d releasing device comprising pivote detents, pivoted plates for holding said detents, levers for actuating said plates, a spring controlled disk for operating said levers, a stem on said disk, an actnating cord connected lwith said stem and tapes adapted to engage said detents .and comiected to the periphery of the mo'uth of the parachute body. v

3. In,a parachute and launching device the combination with the parachute body of a centrally disposed releasing device, restraining tapes adapted' to connect said body With said releasing device and supporting said device, a snpplementary releasing device connected wfith said centrally disposed re-v leasing device, means convenient to the parachutist for Operating said supplementary releasing device and means operatively connecting said supplementary device With said centrally disposed releasing device block, a .lever pivoted in said block and adapted to engage said bar, a cord from said lever to the parachutist and tapes adapted to engage the said detents and connected to the periphery of the mouth of the parachute body;

^ 5. In a parachute and launching -device the combination with the parachute body of a centrally disposed releasing device, restraining tapes adapted to connect said body With said releasing device, means convenient to the parachutist for Operating said releasing device, safety means between said operating means and releasing device and means depending from said body for supporting said releasing device When said restraining tapes are released.

EVERARD RIGHARD GALTHROP. 

